Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan

I am a girl of many contradictions, as you have no doubt already noticed. For example, I am very, very careful about making decisions… right up until the moment when I throw caution to the wind and decide something impulsively. I like things very tidy and neat and orderly…except when I don’t feel like cleaning. And I overthink even the tiniest minutiae of my life… or sometimes just shut my eyes and hope everything will work itself out.

Sometimes I am a very detail-oriented planner.

And sometimes I’m just winging it.

Until I started running about nine years ago, I never gave much thought to a workout plan. I didn’t have specific goals, other than “I don’t want to be fat anymore” so I wasn’t doing anything I would call targeted training. I went to the gym and willed myself through 30 mind-numbing minutes on the elliptical before hitting the big floor for one or two rounds of the same eight machines. I had zero interest in improving my performance and was pretty happy just sleep-walking through my routine.

Once I started running, though, I started caring about seeing results. Not just weight loss or fat loss, exactly, but improvements in my speed or endurance. So I started following a plan. Lo and behold, I was able to increase my distances and started running faster times at my races! Who knew that planning and consistency could be the key to meeting your goals in life???

Ha!

You probably knew that, didn’t you?

I’ll be honest, the workouts I film for YouTube aren’t quite as meticulously planned as my running. Yes, I have a list of ideas and suggestions (which I love getting, by the way, please keep sending me your great ideas!) that I plan on filming, and I stick to my self-imposed schedule of putting out two or three new workouts every week (usually on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays), but beyond that, I keep it pretty loose. If I have the time and energy for a long workout on a Thursday afternoon, then you’re getting a humdinger on Friday! But if I’m wiped out after a busy weekend, sometimes the Monday workout is just a nice little easy-paced Core on the Floor.

I’ve often wondered how youapproach your life of fitness. Do you have a set schedule of workouts for your week, or do you wake up (like I do) and say, “Hmmm, what do I feel like doing today?”

Here is where most fitness gurus will tell you that you must have a plan! If you fail to plan, you plan to fail! And then they want to sell you their “Six Weeks to a Six Pack!” package or whatever. They will insist that you need a certain amount of cardio or a particular style of weight-lifting, and that their plan is the Best! Plan! Ever!!

{Big deep breath}

Even though that “fail to plan” quote is totally one of my favorite sayings about making plans (along with the title of this post), I’m here to tell you that the only thing you really need to plan for is consistency. And if you already have that down, and you’re working out four, five, even six times a week? Then you are a freaking rock star, and don’t let anybody tell you anything different! Your plan is working for you, and you should stick with it. Also? You don’t really need to read any more of this blog post, because I’m about to tell you how I have the Best! Plan! Ever! 🙂

Okay, not really. But it is a plan, and one that will help you get on a schedule and stick to it. Because seriously, consistency is the key. If you’re struggling with being consistent, then you need a plan, and sometimes even making the plan feels overwhelming. There are a lot of options out there for workouts!

So I’ve put together some of my most favorites workouts into a couple of handy-dandy Workout Programs for those of you who have a tough time winging it, and my fondest hope is that they help you get through your day. The links in the Programs will take you directly to the follow along workouts on my YouTube channel, which are free. Seriously, this is super easy; just click and sweat!

Your workout is already planned, now you just have to put in a little work.